"Wow!" Ziggi could hardly believe her eyes. "They're showing trailers of Shaman Rift VI!"
This was the first big convention she had been to, and it definitely didn't disappoint! The crowds, the stalls, the merchandise... It was so different from the small local events she had been used to. In her home town, there were but two clubs devoted to the Shaman series, each boasting around twenty members. ShamCom was the real deal - a hub where the entire fandom could gather, buy the latest games and comics, meet the voice actors and actresses, and possibly even catch a glimpse of the show creators themselves.
"Come on, Ziggi!" her sister said. Unlike Ziggi, she was of the older generation of fans. Zebras like her were partial to the second generation look, shunning the next two as being totally abysmal, and the latest as barely tolerable. It didn't help that Ziggi's favorite character happened to be Enchantress - the wise and ever cryptic mystic that helped the Spirit Three in their adventures. Ziggi absolutely adored her, in her eyes there was no character as perfect. She had spent months making her convention costume to be a perfect copy of Enchantress - from the golden dzilla neck rings to the tribal masks the character always carried along.
"Wait up!" Ziggi shouted as she tried to catch up her sister.
"I told you to leave that stupid costume at the hotel!" the older zebra sighed. "You are as bad as those freaks."
"Enchantress' costume isn't stupid!" Ziggi pouted.
"Enchantress is a weak character, the writers came up with in order to broaden the audience to include silly children," the older Zebra narrowed her eyes. "She is nothing more than a crutch to get things moving along. Shaman II had real characters with depth, not the jokes that pass for characters these days."
Always the same thing. Ever since Ziggi had caught the Shaman bug, she and her sister had been in countless fights, as to which version was better. This was weird, since both of them liked the series. Despite her constant complaining the older zebra continued to keep up to date, if only to complain how things were going downhill. And Ziggi, herself had watched the classics, although she found the art style to be the most horrible thing she had ever seen in her life. The only thing they could agree on was that the series was simply amazing.
"Look, if you'll keep acting like that I might as well leave you here!" the older Zebra said. "Go buy all the Enchantress figures, for all I care!"
"Well, I'll just do that," Ziggi snapped back. "And you can go to your stupid auction! I bet only old mares like you go there!"
"You know what," her sister turned around. "Just meet me at the information desk at three. Until then, you are on your own."
"Fine!" Ziggi yelled, as her sister disappeared in the crowd.
Stupid sister, the young zebra thought. Always ruining her fun. Fuming, Ziggi stomped off towards the official booths of the convention. Several of the big publishers were there, as well as a host of smaller companies having anything to do with the Shaman label, not to mention the thousands of vendors. And there were the lines. Ziggi had been engaged in the Shaman fandom for quite a while and considered herself to be among the devoted, but even she had to admit that the fans here were in a league of their own. Her nearly authentic Enchantress costume, managed to earn a few compliments, and a photo or two, but it was nowhere as detailed to earn her a free pass to a booth. One unsuccessful attempt and Ziggi decided to move to a less crowded area.
Very soon, it became obvious that the size of the crowed around a stall was proportionate to the quality of the merchandise offered. The more she approached the edge of the convention, the fewer the zebras became, and for good reason. At this point, it was curiosity that made Ziggi continue. Torn comics, second hand old generation action figures, common trading cards - no wonder there were no buyers. But could there be something even worse? At the very end of the hall, wearing make shift cloak a newbie larper would be ashamed to wear, a lone vendor stood in front of a rickety table. The item he was selling - a single medallion - looked more like a piece of tin with a leather cord attached to it, than anything Shaman related.
"Hello there," the vendor said seeing Ziggi approach. "Are you lost, youngin'? Most spend the first day near the podiums."
"Just browsing," Ziggi replied. "What are you selling? I don't recognize the amulet. Is it from generation one?"
"You might say that," the vendor laughed. For some reason he sounded much older than he looked. If she were to come across him in a crowd, Ziggi would probably describe him as being in his thirties. When speaking he sounded ancient. "You are a fan of Zecora the Enchantress, I see," he mused. "All the youngsters are into her nowadays."
"You know her name?" Ziggi's eyes grew wide. The name was only mentioned once, in a leaked episode that had briefly appeared on the AetherWay before being taken down for legal reasons. Ziggi herself hadn't actually seen it, but had managed to get her hooves on amateur transcripts.
"I know quite a lot about the Enchantress," the vendor gave a crooked smile. "About her upcoming comic line, about her new appearance, even the original purpose of the character."
"You do?"
"Did you know that the Enchantress was supposed to be evil?" The vendor said nodding thoughtfully.
"No way!" Ziggi gasped.
"Haven't you noticed how she is always helpful, but never too much? With the power she has, she could clearly have helped the Spirit Three on several occasions, but chose not to."
"But that was to help them find their inner strength," Ziggi countered. She wasn't going to accept her favourite character being evil. Indeed she was mysterious, and the things she did didn't always make sense until several episodes later, but she still was good.
"Tell me, little zebra, what would you do if you were in her place?" the vendor leaned forward. "What would you do if you had all that power and knowledge, but were trapped in place you could never escape from? Would you use it to try and find a way out, although that would mean hurting others? Or would you accept your fate and start a new life there?"
The explanation sounded terribly like the plot of a Shaman episode. Try as she might, though, Ziggi couldn't think of one that had those elements. None focusing on the Enchantress, at least.
"I'll find a way to escape without hurting others," she said determined after a while.
"Oh?" The vendor rubbed his hooves.
"There always is a way out! You just have to look hard enough," she said confidently. Every Shaman episode had that message. It was safe to assume it was the right answer.
"Then why don't we find out?" His smile widened. Bright amber light shone through his eyes enveloping Ziggi. It was terrifying, it was creepy, and yet the only thing that she could think of was 'wow, cool effects'. A moment later everything around her had vanished, replaced by a spooky dark forest.
The zebra's self preservation instincts kicked in. What just happened? Had she been kidnapped? The first reaction was to run, but her legs refused to move, as if turned to stone. Alarmed, Ziggi looked down. There don't seem to be anything wrong with her legs. They just refused to function, which was weird, since she could move her head just fine.
"Here we are," the vendor appeared in front of her. He appeared much different than a moment ago. His stripes, previously jet black, were now caramel in colour, as were his eyes. "Welcome to the magical land of Equestria, where fantasy and myth are real," he said with great amusement. "I'm sure you want to run off, but before you do..."
"You magicked me here," Ziggi interrupted.
Any zebra in her situation would probably be freaking out, but having spent her entire life on fantasy books, shows and comics, she didn't find it as disturbing. It wasn't exactly a dream come true, but deep inside she always believed that it was possible to get whisked away to other lands and dimensions. The question was what now?
"Ah, one of the accepting ones," a flash of light came out of his eyes, blinding Ziggi momentary. "I have just given you the knowledge and powers of the Enchantress you so admire. Now our game can start."
"What game is this of you which talk? And what have you done that I cannot walk?" Ziggi said and instantly covered her mouth. What had come over her? Her voice was much deeper than usual, and why was she speaking in rhymes? That certainly hadn't happened before."
"As I said, you are Zecora the Enchantress, keeper of knowledge, mistress of secrets, trapped in a land you cannot escape from," the albino zebra said overly pleased with himself. "And as such you must behave like her. As you've read - the Enchantress always speaks in rhymes."
"How long will you continue with this charade? My sister and others will surely come to my aid!"
"You started the game, remember?" the albino zebra smirked. "And only you can end it. Prove me wrong and yourself right, and you'll be back to where you were before."
"If you make the rules, you can change them as well. How can I be sure that you will ever break the spell?"
"You can't," he laughed. "And that's part of the rules. This land has magical beings, some as powerful as me. Maybe they will help you get home? Or maybe you will discover something I have missed? Either way, if you succeed you would have proven me wrong, and subsequently be free of any future meddling."
Ziggi thought about it for a moment. It wasn't like she had any choice. Doing nothing would result in remaining here. The best course of action was to play along.
"I'll start with the rules," the albino zebra said gleefully. "First, you must always remain in character. If you are to prove Zecora can escape from this predicament you must act like her in every single detail. The rhyming is only part of the performance. Everything else - the food you eat, the clothes you wear, the home you live in, must be authentic."
Ziggi nodded. To be expected. She knew more about the Enchantress than any zebra she had ever met. Pretending to be her shouldn't be that difficult. There was the problem of role playing. Although a cosplayer, Ziggi never got into larping. She could probably do a scene or two, but it would be a stretch if she said she were any good. The ridiculous rhyming could probably help, but would it be enough?
"Second, you are never to reveal your past, or mention the world you came from. Any creatures you meet, are to believe you are a mysterious outcast, living in the woods."
So there were others here? That was a slight relief. Maybe they could help her escape this place. The albino vendor had mentioned there were magical beings rivaling him in magic. Surely they could lend a hoof. She was forbidden from revealing her past, or talking about her land of birth, but that didn't prevent from asking about other worlds.
"Finally, when asked for help, you are always to be vague, and only help when the solution to the problem is already discovered by another."
"You are being childish in your rules!" Ziggi said, frowning. "Helping when help is not needed, just is cruel."
"Just be vague then," the albino zebra shrugged, not overly concerned. Apparently the other two rules were the important ones. "I have already granted you knowledge of plants, potions and animals. It shouldn't be difficult to convince any being that you are a wise mystic of some sort. And, of course, I have given you the power of magic. Should you wish you could hypnotize a being, bend it to your will. Within reason, of course. Your enchantments will not work on powerful magical beings, although you are free to try," he laughed. "You are the one playing Zecora, after all. Would she be wise and helpful, or evil and deceitful, is all up to you."
So that was the real game? He wanted to see if Ziggi would remain loyal to her beliefs and play a good Zecora, or would desperation cause her to become evil as she tried to escape? The answer seemed obvious.
"Finally, since you did seem so eager, unlike most before you, I will give you a gift." The tin amulet Ziggi had seen on his stand at the convention, materialized around her neck. Taking a closer look, she saw there was a car wheel engraved on its shiny surface. "This is an additional means of escape. I call it the my car."
"This is just your pretense, for magic in it I do not sense!"
"And you will not, for it is has no power... yet." Something about the albino zebra's new smile made Ziggi feel uneasy. "As any car, this amulet will need four wheels to take you back home. To charge a wheel all you need to do is steal some magic from a princess and place it in the amulet. Four wheels - four princesses. Do this simple task and I will consider you the victor of our little game."
"That is four more than I can hope to see," Ziggi snorted. "Or do you think they will just appear before me?"
"You'd be surprised," the albino zebra smirked, then transformed in a ball of light. "Just remember the rules," his voice echoed, as the light began to fade away. "Break one and even my car won't be able to help you!"
And then he was gone. For several minutes Ziggi stood there, thinking. It was alarming how calm she was, considering the circumstances. An unknown entity had just transported her to another land, possibly another dimension even, and all she could think of was how to best get in character. Maybe that was the Enchantress' willpower? If the albino vendor could give her Zecora's power and knowledge, it stood to reason he had granted her the mystic's strength of will as well.
Making a few steps forward she looked at the world that was to be her home. No technology to be seen, no friends, not even a stupid sister. Here she wasn't Ziggi anymore, she was Zecora - the wise enchantress, the keeper of secrets, whose power rivaled the stars themselves. Here she could achieve anything and even the monsters that roamed in the dark couldn't harm her. In fact there was only one thing she had to be worried about - the answer to a simple question.
Was she going to play her character as depicted in the series she knew and loved, or was she going to follow the albino's suggestion and turn evil?